(eMachine had offered a $400 rebate for users who signed up for a year of Prodigy ISP, but the modems in their PCs wouldn’t work with Prodigy. Doh!)

Me: “Yes, there’s a problem with some of the eMachines not working with Prodigy. I’ll put a new modem in for you and it will work. You can come back in about an hour to pick it up.”

Woman: “I don’t want you to do that!”

Me: “Uh… what?”

Woman: “I don’t see why I have to get this fixed!”

Me: “Unfortunately, your computer has a faulty modem, and the problem was found after it left the factory. However, I can replace your broken modem with a brand new one for free, and that will take care of the problem.”

Woman: “But I don’t want you messing around in my computer!”

Me: “This is my job–I install computer components all day.”

Woman: “Well, I don’t want you messing around in there breaking things!”

Me: “Replacing a modem is not that complicated. It’s like putting a new tire on a car.”

Woman: “But if I just bought a new car, I shouldn’t need to have the tires changed in order to get it to work!”

Me: “Yes, I understand that. I apologize about the faulty modem, and I’m offering to fix it for free.”